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Are Jarrett Guarantano and Feleipe Franks the future of the quarterback position in the SEC East?

Not only would Georgia’s Jacob Eason and South Carolina’s Jake Bentley dispute that, but a few teammates of the Vols and Gators prospects may have something to say about it as well.

Though neither has actually locked up a starting job for their respective programs (or taken a snap at the college level), Sports Illustrated’s Colin Becht recently named Guarantano and Franks as two of the nation’s top redshirt freshmen to watch in 2017. The SEC quarterbacking duo is joined by Alabama LB Ben Davis on the list.

Franks will have to contend with returning starter Luke Del Rio and fellow redshirt freshman Kyle Trask to earn the Gators starting gig. But with Del Rio hampered by a shoulder injury, Franks should receive every opportunity to win the job this spring. As Becht points out, “it’ll be a bad sign if Del Rio is under center again to kick off the 2017 season.”

As for Guarantano, he gets the privilege of trying to replace one of the Vols’ most successful quarterbacks in recent history in Joshua Dobbs. Assuming the dual-threat option can beat out Quinten Dormady for the honor, of course.

The outcome of these offseason quarterback battles at Florida and Tennessee is likely to have a huge impact on which SEC East team finds its way to Atlanta in 2017.

Let’s not forget Ben Davis. He may be the next great Crimson Tide linebacker after patiently waiting his turn in 2016. With much of Alabama’s talent at the linebacker position departing (Reuben Foster, Tim Williams and Ryan Anderson are all headed for the NFL), the opportunity is there for the former 5-star recruit to emerge as a star. He may have pushed his way onto the scene in 2016 if a preseason ankle injury hadn’t slowed him in the early going.
 
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